A subscriber to a channel on the American video-sharing platform YouTube is a user who has chosen to receive the channel's content by clicking on that channel's "Subscribe" button, and each user's subscription feed consists of videos published by channels to which the user is subscribed.[1] The ability for users to subscribe was introduced in October 2005.[2] YouTube began publishing a list of its most-subscribed channels in April 2006.[3] An early archive of the list dates to May 17, 2006.[4]
The most-subscribed YouTube channel is MrBeast, having 319 million subscribers as of October 5, 2024, and gaining subscribers by an average of about 184,000 per day.[14][15][16]
The following table lists the 50 most-subscribed YouTube channels,[B][17] as well as the primary language, country, and content category of each channel. The channels are ordered by number of subscribers. Those whose displayed subscriber counts are identical, are listed so that the channel whose current growth rate indicates that its displayed subscriber count will exceed that of the other channel is listed first. Automatically generated channels that lack their own videos, such as Music and News, and channels that have been made effectively obsolete as a result of the transferral of their content, such as JustinBieberVEVO and TaylorSwiftVEVO[C] are excluded.
As of June 2024, 21 of the 50 channels listed primarily produce content in English while 17 primarily produce content in Hindi. All 50 channels have surpassed 56 million subscribers.[18] Eleven of the channels have surpassed 100 million subscribers and only two have more than 200 million subscribers: MrBeast and T-Series. MrBeast is the only channel that has more than 300 million subscribers.[19]
^Felix Kjellberg is Swedish, while his main channel is listed as originating from Japan, while his highlights channel originates from the United States.
^TheSoul Publishing is currently based in Cyprus; it was originally based in Russia and is still Russian-owned.[28]
Historical progression of most-subscribed channels
The following table lists the 20 distinct runs as the most-subscribed YouTube channel recorded since May 2006. Only runs lasting at least 24 hours are included. Twelve different channels have held the position, with PewDiePie holding the title a record four times (and also holds the records for the longest time as the most subscribed channel (1,920 days in his third time), the shortest time as the most subscribed channel (four days in his second time), and the longest overall combined time as the most subscribed channel (2,017 days)). In second place is Smosh, which held it three times, while third place is tied between nigahiga, T-Series, and YouTube's own channel, which have all held it twice each. YouTube's own official channel, then known as "YouTube Spotlight", briefly held the title in late 2013; one factor that contributed to the channel's rise to the top spot was the site's autosuggestion for new users to subscribe to the channel upon registration.[29]Geriatric1927 had the shortest overall time as the most-subscribed YouTube Channel only holding the achievement for 28 days.
Overall of the twelve channels who have held the record, seven featured individual males, one (Brookers) featured an individual female, two (T-Series, YouTube Spotlight) were brand channels, one (Smosh) was a duo of males which later became a collective and production company, and one (lonelygirl15) was a webseries. Nine of the channels were based in the United States, one (geriatric1927) was based in England, one (T-Series) was based in India, and one (Pewdiepie) was based in Sweden.
In mid-2018, the subscriber count of the Indian music video channel T-Series rapidly approached that of Swedish web comedian and Let's Player PewDiePie, who was the most-subscribed user on YouTube at the time.[95][96] As a result, fans of PewDiePie and T-Series, other YouTubers, and celebrities showed their support for both channels. During the competition, both channels gained a large number of subscribers at a rapid rate, and surpassed each other's subscriber count on multiple occasions in February, March, and April 2019.[68][69][70][72] T-Series eventually permanently surpassed PewDiePie, and on May 29, 2019, it became the first channel to reach 100 million subscribers.[89]
In 2024, when MrBeast surpassed T-Series, he tweeted that his fans had "avenged" PewDiePie.[78] In the lead-up to MrBeast's channel becoming the most-subscribed, T-Series issued a call for subscribers.[97] Meanwhile, MrBeast urged his fans to not see the competition between his channel and T-Series as "this country versus that country", while also warning against anyone becoming hateful.[98]
^ abAlthough now simply called "YouTube", YouTube's official channel was named "YouTube Spotlight" in 2013.
^The total number of channels listed may exceed 50 if a tie exists for the 50th-highest subscriber count.
^These are not to be mistaken for the channels Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift, both of which are included.
^T-Series surpassed PewDiePie in subscriber count on numerous occasions, each lasting fewer than 24 hours, from February to late March 2019.[68][69][70] The first incident to last at least 24 hours began on March 27 and ended on April 1.[71][72]
^Gutelle, Sam (March 15, 2017). "The History Of YouTube's Most-Subscribed Channels Is A Fun Nostalgia Trip". tubefilter. Archived from the original on June 2, 2017. Retrieved June 1, 2017. In the early days, anyone who made a big viral video could enter the top ten, with "Evolution of Dance" performer Judson Laipply even holding the top spot for a bit.
^"Brookers". YouTube. Archived from the original on October 29, 2013. Retrieved November 8, 2016.
^"Brooke BRODACK | EMC". www.entertainment-masterclass.tv. Archived from the original on June 12, 2018. Retrieved September 11, 2016.